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Keene and Frohmann #3
The Red House
In this third book featuring Cambridgeshire detectives Morris Keene and Chloe Frohmann, literal buried skeletons link a dark suicide to the mysterious past of a newly-engaged couple who may be brother and sister.
Maxwell is living his worst nightmare when he begins to question whether his fiancée Imogen is his own blood sister, separated by adoption. A visit to Imogen’s birthplace in Cambridge stirs up déjà vu that intensifies his fears.
While Detective Chief Inspector Morris Keene languishes at home, struggling with a debilitating injury and post-traumatic stress, his former partner Detective Inspector Chloe Frohmann is following a suicide case in which Morris’ daughter Dora is suspected of assisting the death.
When buried skeletons are discovered next to an old barn, the suicide is linked back to Imogen's childhood, revealing horrors of the past and new dangers in the present.
Maxwell is living his worst nightmare when he begins to question whether his fiancée Imogen is his own blood sister, separated by adoption. A visit to Imogen’s birthplace in Cambridge stirs up déjà vu that intensifies his fears.
While Detective Chief Inspector Morris Keene languishes at home, struggling with a debilitating injury and post-traumatic stress, his former partner Detective Inspector Chloe Frohmann is following a suicide case in which Morris’ daughter Dora is suspected of assisting the death.
When buried skeletons are discovered next to an old barn, the suicide is linked back to Imogen's childhood, revealing horrors of the past and new dangers in the present.
352 pages, Paperback
First published February 19, 2015
105 people are currently reading
307 people want to read
About the author
Emily Winslow
15 books135 followersEmily Winslow is the author of a series of crime novels and a memoir. Her books have been published by Random House, HarperCollins, Allison & Busby, and Shanghai Translation Publishing House.
Her novels (The Whole World, The Start of Everything, The Red House, and Look For Her) have been called “brilliant” (The Washington Post), “vivid” (Parade magazine) and “dazzling” (Shelf Awareness). Her memoir, Jane Doe January, is “meticulously constructed and ultimately terrifying” (The New York Times), “potent” (Kirkus), and “compelling” (Bustle).
She grew up in the U.S. and now lives in Cambridge, England teaching for the University of Cambridge and for Cambridge Creative Writing Company.
Her novels (The Whole World, The Start of Everything, The Red House, and Look For Her) have been called “brilliant” (The Washington Post), “vivid” (Parade magazine) and “dazzling” (Shelf Awareness). Her memoir, Jane Doe January, is “meticulously constructed and ultimately terrifying” (The New York Times), “potent” (Kirkus), and “compelling” (Bustle).
She grew up in the U.S. and now lives in Cambridge, England teaching for the University of Cambridge and for Cambridge Creative Writing Company.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
March 28, 2016
This book was in the monthly subscription box from Book and A Brew that i signed up for so wasn't normally a book I would have been drawn to.
This was a really interesting mystery book with plenty of twists and turns and kept me interested the whole way through. It did take a little while to get into but soon the story all started to link together and it made more sense.
Two dead bodies at The Red House are investigated by the police and as they search they uncover more to the story than meets the eye, and more bodies too. This is told from a number of different Point of Views which really adds to the depth of the story, and we also follow Imogen and her search for her much loved adopted brother Sebastian as there's no trace of him since the car crash that proved devastating to the family.
There were some fascinating characters in this book that meant at times you didn't know who to believe or trust as many had their 'issues'.
I did find the ending a little rushed and neatly rounded up but it was still an enjoyable read full of family deception, lies and affairs
This was a really interesting mystery book with plenty of twists and turns and kept me interested the whole way through. It did take a little while to get into but soon the story all started to link together and it made more sense.
Two dead bodies at The Red House are investigated by the police and as they search they uncover more to the story than meets the eye, and more bodies too. This is told from a number of different Point of Views which really adds to the depth of the story, and we also follow Imogen and her search for her much loved adopted brother Sebastian as there's no trace of him since the car crash that proved devastating to the family.
There were some fascinating characters in this book that meant at times you didn't know who to believe or trust as many had their 'issues'.
I did find the ending a little rushed and neatly rounded up but it was still an enjoyable read full of family deception, lies and affairs
March 1, 2015
As I read The Start Of Everything and The Whole World by Emily Winslow, I couldn't wait to read Red House. So much happens in The Red House. Maxwell questions whether his fiance Imogen is his own sister, seperated by adoption. Imagine the nightmare of that! Too add to the horror Buried skeletons are discovered next to an old barn link suicide and Imogen's childhood, revealing horrors in the past and triggering danger in the present. I am so glad Emily Winslow is back with this new novel. I can not wait for Emily's next book.
June 2, 2024
This is the most batshit crazy, soap opera-esque novel I have ever read. It revolves around multiple completely insane coincidences, and there are three unrelated women who are all deranged criminals with unhealthy relationships with their kids (and a fourth who is fixated on her kid who's slightly less deranged, and a fifth who is not a mother but fixated on her baby brother).
26 years before the book starts a homeless teenage girl gives birth to twins. Fortunately a doctor and the nurse he's having an affair with happen to be passing and help deliver the babies. Unfortunately the girl and one of the babies die. The doctor and his girlfriend bury the bodies in her back garden - which is a very normal thing for medical professionals to do when a patient passes of natural causes - and he steals the other baby and takes it home to give to his wife who is psychotic and has been pretending to be pregnant by stuffing a cushion up her shirt. Three years later the doctor and his wife die in a car accident and the child is adopted by an even more psychotic woman, who goes to extremes to make sure he spends his entire life believing she's his biological mother, and tries to kill his girlfriends so she won't lose him.
He meets a girl on holiday in Spain and they fall in love, then he discovers she's his long-lost sister (the doctor and his wife's real child) who has been fixated on finding her little brother her entire life. Then in another coincidence he lands a job as music tutor to a girl who turns out to be the granddaughter/murderer (via mercy killing) of the nurse who helped deliver him and bury his real mum's body, the one his girlfriend/sister's dad was sleeping with. He also just happens to be present when his mum and twin's bodies are discovered, and is briefly a suspect.
In the end he and his girlfriend decide to get married even though they were raised as siblings and she's been obsessed with finding him as her brother her entire life, because they aren't genetically related. Romantic!
It's a fun, quick read, but basically the literary equivalent of watching an episode of Hollyoaks or Days of Our Lives.
26 years before the book starts a homeless teenage girl gives birth to twins. Fortunately a doctor and the nurse he's having an affair with happen to be passing and help deliver the babies. Unfortunately the girl and one of the babies die. The doctor and his girlfriend bury the bodies in her back garden - which is a very normal thing for medical professionals to do when a patient passes of natural causes - and he steals the other baby and takes it home to give to his wife who is psychotic and has been pretending to be pregnant by stuffing a cushion up her shirt. Three years later the doctor and his wife die in a car accident and the child is adopted by an even more psychotic woman, who goes to extremes to make sure he spends his entire life believing she's his biological mother, and tries to kill his girlfriends so she won't lose him.
He meets a girl on holiday in Spain and they fall in love, then he discovers she's his long-lost sister (the doctor and his wife's real child) who has been fixated on finding her little brother her entire life. Then in another coincidence he lands a job as music tutor to a girl who turns out to be the granddaughter/murderer (via mercy killing) of the nurse who helped deliver him and bury his real mum's body, the one his girlfriend/sister's dad was sleeping with. He also just happens to be present when his mum and twin's bodies are discovered, and is briefly a suspect.
In the end he and his girlfriend decide to get married even though they were raised as siblings and she's been obsessed with finding him as her brother her entire life, because they aren't genetically related. Romantic!
It's a fun, quick read, but basically the literary equivalent of watching an episode of Hollyoaks or Days of Our Lives.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 9, 2019
I spent most of this book confused and trying really hard to follow the plot. I think this book suffered from trying to do too much. There was no less than 4 mysteries going on simultaneously. I think that is probably 2 mysteries too many. Personally, I had a hard time keeping the cases straight, so that by the end of the book I felt no accomplishment in the cases being closed. I had lost the thread throughout the book somewhere. The author would have been better served drawing the reader deep into one or two of the mysteries, and really getting us invested in the characters and their motivations.
Also, another aspect that added to the obfuscation, was that each chapter changed point of view. We had no less than 7 narrators. I had to constantly flip to the start of a chapter to remind myself who was telling this part of the story. Then, some characters flashed back and told from the present all in one chapter. This technique only added to my confusion.
I found no satisfaction in the ending because the ending flip flopped, so I had to read it twice to clearly understand how it ended. This was supposed to be popular fiction, not a pensive tome. I should not have had to put that much work into understanding how it all ended.
Also, another aspect that added to the obfuscation, was that each chapter changed point of view. We had no less than 7 narrators. I had to constantly flip to the start of a chapter to remind myself who was telling this part of the story. Then, some characters flashed back and told from the present all in one chapter. This technique only added to my confusion.
I found no satisfaction in the ending because the ending flip flopped, so I had to read it twice to clearly understand how it ended. This was supposed to be popular fiction, not a pensive tome. I should not have had to put that much work into understanding how it all ended.
June 21, 2017
*beware spoiler ahead*
One too many babies in the plot, so while reading the resolution, you go "Hunh? Which not quite abandoned baby?" Otherwise an entertaining mystery, and I'm looking forward to Winslow's next.
One too many babies in the plot, so while reading the resolution, you go "Hunh? Which not quite abandoned baby?" Otherwise an entertaining mystery, and I'm looking forward to Winslow's next.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 1, 2016
As a couple of other reviewers have mentioned, this page-turner and otherwise cleverly constructed crime story has to be marked down on two counts - firstly all the narrators (and there are a few) sound the same, even though they are male and female, aged from their teens to their forties and secondly for the ending, which explains things with a fair few coincidences and in a way that makes you wonder if you missed out a chapter.....
August 11, 2015
I liked the book although it took me a while to get into it, but then I was hooked and had to find out 'what happened'. A good murder mystery told in an unusual way. Entertaining read after all.
December 8, 2017
This is a non-traditional crime story. Instead of focusing on police procedures toward solving a crime, this one looks at how a crime affects many of those involve. There are current and former police officers, two teenage girls caught up in the drama, a young man and his fiance who have past connections to the area, and an assortment of relatives. The story in told in rounds with narrative in the voice of the main characters.
There is the very pregnant Chief Inspector who plays more of a supporting role while working various aspects of the case. There is a former chief inspector on retired disability and his teenage daughter caught up in an unhealthy relationship with the other teenage girl. The main characters are Maxwell and Imogen, newly engaged, who come to Cambridge for his job possibility and for her to work through childhood trauma where she and her three brothers were sent into care on the tragic death of her parents.
A focus on victims and bystanders may be more of a European trait in crime fiction. And it seems to be treated only lightly in American crime stories. While this story is not a typical police procedural, it provides a drama of its own as the various characters work through their own stories.
There is the very pregnant Chief Inspector who plays more of a supporting role while working various aspects of the case. There is a former chief inspector on retired disability and his teenage daughter caught up in an unhealthy relationship with the other teenage girl. The main characters are Maxwell and Imogen, newly engaged, who come to Cambridge for his job possibility and for her to work through childhood trauma where she and her three brothers were sent into care on the tragic death of her parents.
A focus on victims and bystanders may be more of a European trait in crime fiction. And it seems to be treated only lightly in American crime stories. While this story is not a typical police procedural, it provides a drama of its own as the various characters work through their own stories.
June 5, 2024
The first two thirds of this was OK - a little clunky, told from a few too many POVs, an excess (imho) of focus on the relationships of the cast of characters in and around Cambridge.. families, police detectives, a couple preparing for their upcoming wedding. I think I expected more of a police procedural than the psychological thriller this ended up being, but to start with it was pretty readable.
The latter third, which brings together disparate strands of a grandmother and a builder killed inside the titular red house, the discovery of a woman's skeleton with her baby in her arms, two teenage girls and their overprotective parents, and a woman seeking to find the younger brother she was adopted separate from.. well frankly it was batshit crazy unrealistic crap with some unbelievable behaviour, ridiculous twists and some very unconvincing connections. Overly ambitious? Maybe it was just aimed at a reader who finds it more interesting to immerse in characters and hence disregard the plot flaws.
The latter third, which brings together disparate strands of a grandmother and a builder killed inside the titular red house, the discovery of a woman's skeleton with her baby in her arms, two teenage girls and their overprotective parents, and a woman seeking to find the younger brother she was adopted separate from.. well frankly it was batshit crazy unrealistic crap with some unbelievable behaviour, ridiculous twists and some very unconvincing connections. Overly ambitious? Maybe it was just aimed at a reader who finds it more interesting to immerse in characters and hence disregard the plot flaws.
April 2, 2018
This is a writer I have had high hopes for, and each book has impressed me a little more. Although the story contained some flashbacks and jumped around in terms of the characters’ perspectives, this was more straightforward and easier to follow than the previous books in the series. It was also more gripping, and I like the way she builds up to the reveal for each aspect of the mystery, but then leaves one piece not completely answered; the reader has to make the decision about what really happened. Others might disagree, but I found this a really intriguing and satisfying way of ending the novel. I have high hopes for the fourth in the series, Look for Her, just published in the U.S. in paperback.
April 5, 2020
(not actually a review, just a quick summary because I'm just using Goodreads to remember which books I've read. Also note that date read is VERY much approximate).
In my memory this is set in a broad flat American country landscape with a farmhouse and attached barn. But it looks like it was set in cambridgeshire so I'm not sure if I'm mixing it up with something else or just that cambridgeshire feels kind of american because it's so flat. Main character thinks his fiance might be his long lost sister. I can't remember much more than that, but there are buried skeletons (literally) and a lot of twists and turns. Something to do with neighbours having an affair? I think I was gripped by it.
In my memory this is set in a broad flat American country landscape with a farmhouse and attached barn. But it looks like it was set in cambridgeshire so I'm not sure if I'm mixing it up with something else or just that cambridgeshire feels kind of american because it's so flat. Main character thinks his fiance might be his long lost sister. I can't remember much more than that, but there are buried skeletons (literally) and a lot of twists and turns. Something to do with neighbours having an affair? I think I was gripped by it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 5, 2020
This is a really interesting book. There are several narrators and several mysteries to be solved by the three detectives (one on sick leave) involved. Because the stories are told by different narrators it is hard to actually picture them or get a sense of who they are. As a result I found it hard to care about what happened to any of them. That said, the writing is very good and the book goes along at a nice pace. It is an enjoyable mystery and I recommend it to anyone who likes mystery stories.
November 25, 2020
I enjoyed this but I got so confused. There was a lot going on, with different angles, different people speaking and different time frames. By the end I struggled to work out how it all fitted together. I think it would have been easier if I had read quicker because once a big event had happened, it was dropped for the next chapter and returned to later in the book, which although a novel way of story telling, did cause me to have to flip back or struggle to remember the gist of what was occurring.
May 4, 2022
Read the entire book in one day, sitting in the sun. Which is a big deal for my ADHD brain! Couldn't put it down, to the point that my forehead got sunburnt. Realised a bit too late that this was the third book in a series but I think it also works as a standalone book, to its credit. Have just started book number 1, and am glad to have a new book series to get stuck into and follow. Would recommend to fans of Tess Gerritsen or MJ Arlidge, to me it was a middle ground between those two, who are two of my favourite authors. Lots of twists and turns, a great read!
May 30, 2017
This story of Imogen and Maxwell is fantastically well written. The relationship is stretched when family skeletons are unearthed (literally). The issues it causes for them are immense and turn their lives upside down.
I was surprised by the ending but more so that I understood why they chose to end things as they did. After all love is everything
I was surprised by the ending but more so that I understood why they chose to end things as they did. After all love is everything
November 23, 2017
My first foray into this series (and this is not the first book in it) so a lot of context may be missing, but the book is fine as a standalone. Well done and good writing, but I thought there were too many points of view. Always read the chapter title to find out whose narration you're reading.
November 26, 2017
It started slow, introducing each character. I thought I knew each character, but as the story progressed there were twists and turns. No one was quite what I had anticipated. I really enjoyed this one. I've put the earlier books in the series on my list to investigate.
March 19, 2021
It's a good read.
The moments when the author describes a certain accident or a certain event which comes up as surprise is perfect enough to want to take a step back and breathe to get hold of yourself.
The moments when the author describes a certain accident or a certain event which comes up as surprise is perfect enough to want to take a step back and breathe to get hold of yourself.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 31, 2023
well written but the story feels far-fetched
A good read and cleverly written but unfortunately the plot seems improbable in some places and this becomes a distraction when reading…
A good read and cleverly written but unfortunately the plot seems improbable in some places and this becomes a distraction when reading…
November 19, 2017
This sounded like a great plot but it didn't quite work for me. The characters are weak and the story jumps around so much from one character and place to another--with different narrators who all sound the same. I lost interest until the pace picked up near the end. I haven't read the other books in the series--that may be the reason I didn't connect with this story.
January 17, 2018
Plot confuses
This book was different and confusing at times. I had a hard time following all the storylines
But enjoyed the characters and the eventual ending
This book was different and confusing at times. I had a hard time following all the storylines
But enjoyed the characters and the eventual ending
December 2, 2018
There some unexpected plot twists in this book. I enjoyed it.
June 10, 2016
A special thank you to Edelweiss and HarperCollins for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
2.5 stars. Like the other novels in the series, this one is also told from various points of view in first person narrative. Again Winslow falls down with this format, there are too many points of view and she would be so much more effective if she would just stuck with her detective team. There is the potential there to have great chemistry and it would be an interesting juxtaposition. While this book has less supporting characters, the multiple points of view stall the plot at times.
I was intrigued to read Winslow's books because they are marketed for fans of Kate Atkinson and Donna Tartt. I don't think anyone should have their work compared against Tartt, I feel that she is in a league all her own. That being said, I would definitely check out other books in the series because I think Winslow has a lot of potential. This one was marginally better than The Start of Everything.
2.5 stars. Like the other novels in the series, this one is also told from various points of view in first person narrative. Again Winslow falls down with this format, there are too many points of view and she would be so much more effective if she would just stuck with her detective team. There is the potential there to have great chemistry and it would be an interesting juxtaposition. While this book has less supporting characters, the multiple points of view stall the plot at times.
I was intrigued to read Winslow's books because they are marketed for fans of Kate Atkinson and Donna Tartt. I don't think anyone should have their work compared against Tartt, I feel that she is in a league all her own. That being said, I would definitely check out other books in the series because I think Winslow has a lot of potential. This one was marginally better than The Start of Everything.
December 4, 2016
An almost Dickensian plot. How it runs back and forth! Concentrate! Central is a love story between Maxwell and Imogen – but is it incestuous? Has there been a murder? And what on earth has been going on at the Red House. This is a novel of difficult teenagers, awful parents though fortunately not all or one would despair of the human race. There’s a pregnant inspector, another with PTSD, so problems among the investigators too. But of course a novel thrives on problems, dies when we don’t care about them. Each chapter is written in the first person which is disconcerting at first, all the jumping around especially when the last one has been left on a cliff hanger and we don’t get back to the cliff for another chapter or two. I became a bit too aware of the structure. But the characters are good and the language too. I was won over. An author to watch.
February 7, 2016
Interesting plot with a lot of past mystery to be discovered. A good set up, but maybe too many coincidences to be convincing at times. The pace is good though and the various plot lines flow well.
The tale is told from multiple points of view but the characters' individual voices don't come through at all. Each voice seems the same, male or female, adult or teenager. And the ending is rather odd. A narrative suddenly appears within the text outlining what happened years back, giving the key to the plot, rather than having the characters work it out; it seemed as if the author just couldn't bring the story to a conclusion any other way.
The tale is told from multiple points of view but the characters' individual voices don't come through at all. Each voice seems the same, male or female, adult or teenager. And the ending is rather odd. A narrative suddenly appears within the text outlining what happened years back, giving the key to the plot, rather than having the characters work it out; it seemed as if the author just couldn't bring the story to a conclusion any other way.
December 4, 2016
Enjoyed it somewhat but disappointed in one of the subplots ending.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews